Don't
by Waterlilies
Summary: Choices are made, but where does the devoted heart lie? Royai


A/N: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist. You can thank Hiromu Arakawa. Here's my first FMA fic on Royai, and it's a one shot (well perhaps). Be forewarned there are references to the movie just at the beginning! The lyric is from "Don't Forget Me" by Way out West.

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Don't forget me

Don't regret me

Don't suspend me

Don't neglect me

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The quest for Shambala was forever sealed, Mustang made sure of it by sealing the gate in the lost city. Taking one final look of the ruins of the forgotten city, he made his way to the surface and headed back to Central. For the past two years, he took his post at the northern Amestris and Drachma border, and now he was forced out in the open. There was no place to run anymore. "Hawkeye." The former General looked ahead of him and saw his loyal lieutenant still standing her ground even after he refused to let her ride with him.

"Welcome back, Sir." She saluted him and waited for his response.

"You don't have to salute me. It should be the other way around."

She immediately withdrew her hand to her side. "I know but old habits die hard." The others soon gathered around their former leader, wondering if he would stay for sure. They desperately needed him to be back, Fuhrer or not.

"I'm heading back with the first train that leaves Central tomorrow," his voice firm in his orders. There would be no arguing with him on the subject. With that said, he saluted all of them before reporting to the higher ups.

In the great council, a new group of Brass commanded in their seats. It was the same council that demoted him previously after he recovered from his wounds suffered from Bradley. "Corporal Mustang reporting, Sirs." He saluted them as he neared the front of the room.

"You may precede." The General nodded at him to begin.

"The gate has been sealed. There shouldn't be anymore breaches with our world to anywhere else." His eye remained focus at the group.

Another General interjected, "Eyewitnesses have said that Fullmetal did indeed come back. Are these reports true?"

"Yes, Sir, they are. But, he and his brother returned to the other side using the gate." He waited for his next question if any.

"I see. Very well then, the Elric brothers made their choice. As for you, Corporal Mustang, you may return to your post at the northern border. That is all." The General closed their brief meeting.

The military dog took in his order as any other officer would do, and saluted the group once more before leaving. Outside the great marble hall, a pair of copper-red orbs caught hold of him.

"Hawkeye," the hero of Ishbal was stunned to see her there. "You didn't have to wait for me."

"How did it go, Sir?" She held out a handkerchief for him, noting the sweat that collected on his forehead.

"Same old…same old." He neglected the white cloth and began to head towards the door. The sounds of her shoes clicked against the tiled floor, "You don't have to follow me anymore, Hawkeye."

"But, Sir," his words took her back slightly, "I have to."

"That promise no longer holds between us." Mustang continued to walk on. He didn't know any other way out, and this way his only way…to set her free from her promise.

Riza watched in silence as the only man she pledged her to life to fade in the consuming streets of Central. For two years, she remained here, waiting for his return. Not a single day pass did she blame herself, for not being there early enough to help him bring down the Fuhrer. When she nursed him back to health, she felt something inside her change. And now this, he had cut her loose from her binding promise. Her copper eyes burned, but she didn't shed a single tear for him. "Coward, you're running again" the words lingered on her lips. She headed back to HQ and silently took her seat among Havoc and the others. Everyone knew she had gone to wait for Mustang, but no one dared to ask how it went. The probability of being riddled with bullets was high. High enough that everyone focused on their paperwork, which would have normally been left to the last few minutes of their day.

At that moment, she wanted to scream at the world for this twisted fate of theirs. But no, she couldn't. Any sign of feelings were frowned upon, and it showed weakness. Instead, she dove into her paperwork diligent as ever. The only sounds heard in their office were the scratching of pens on fine parchment paper and the usual ticking of the clock. By the end of the day, she was the last one to leave. The clock's face reflected a quarter to nine, and the pale moonlight leaked through the window that she was standing by. She had made up her mind. Quickly, she pulled out a piece of paper and wrote a small note to her officers. With that, she placed it underneath the table lamp, where everyone would see it in the morning. Looking back at her office, she stepped out and locked the doors, and made haste to the great council one more time.

"Are you sure about this, Lieutenant?" The General eyed her questioningly, while his deep voice echoed through the chamber. Her request was out of character for her.

"Positive, Sir," she looked at him directly in the eye.

"Very well then, your request has been granted."

"Thank you, Sir." She saluted to the General and headed out of the room.

The gray skies provided him cover as he made his way to the train station. Already, a few early birds were there, but he didn't expect to see any of his friends there to see him off. "Hello there, Roy."

"Gracia, what brings you here?" A smile appeared on his weary face.

"I think you may already know." She held a sleeping Elysia in her arms.

It was the perfect time to change the subject, "How are you doing?"

"As well as can be expected. I managed to pull out old boxes that Hughes stuffed with photos of her. She seems to like them."

"Good old Hughes. I just visited him yesterday." The widow smiled at him for the kind gesture. The moment he said it, he knew that's how she found him here today.

"Can I do anything to change your mind? You and Riza belong together, even Maes kept saying that when he was alive."

"No, I have my orders. I have to head back north." The train's whistle cut into their conversation and woke up the sleeping girl.

"Uncle Roy!" The girl nearly jumped at the unsuspecting Corporal. "Are you staying?"

"Sorry, Uncle Roy has to go back to work. Maybe another time." He handed her back to Gracia, but before he did, he patted the girl's head.

The ray of sunshine looked back at him, "Okay," slight disappointment tinged in her voice, "bye Uncle Roy." She looked on along with her mother as he boarded the train. The pair waved as the locomotive lurched out of the station.

Riza paced back and forth from her closet to her bed, as Black Hayate looked at the foot, wondering what his mother was trying to accomplish in her haste. "Do you think I'm doing the right thing?" She muttered the sentence as she fetched a pair of military boots.

The black and white dog raised his head above the ground and yipped in response. He had no clue as to what she still was trying to accomplish. In his world, it was black and white. No areas of doubt and uncertainty. The dog sat on his hind legs with his tail wagging.

Riza focused in on her disorganized suitcase. The normally organized and punctual officer now faced a hurdle in trying to gather her belongings and make the last train that headed to the north for the day.

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A cold gentle wind greeted his face as he stood guard. Another quiet day at the border, and not a single soul was in sight. It was home sweet home to him. A fitting tomb for his alchemic powers…fire meets ice.

In the distance, a stray white rabbit scurried out of its borough. The Corporal raised his gun in defense in case anyone leered out of the forest. Every fiber in his body tensed, waiting for the impending intruder. No one came out. "Hmph."

"You should be more careful." A sharp click came behind him.

It was a sound he was all too familiar with. "How many times did I tell you?"

"You can't push me away, Roy."

"Dammit Hawkeye!" He turned around expecting to see her in the usual dress code that was required. Instead, his jet black eye fell upon a light azure winter coat. It dawned on him slowly. His mind rewinding the seconds that passed. She rarely called him by his first name. "What did you do?"

"Can't you tell?" She eyed him, trying to elicit a response from him.

"You didn't."

"What if I did, you can't stop me." She still aimed the gun at him, as she narrowed the distance between them.

"Hawkeye, this is insane. Do the others know about your decision?" He ran his fingers through his hair.

"In do course."

"You have to leave, you shouldn't be here at all. There's nothing between us anymore."

A bullet pierced the unbroken snow next to where he stood. "Wrong answer, Mustang." She held her finger against the trigger, ready to fire another bullet.

"What do you want me to do?" His obsidian orbs pleaded with her.

"Stop running away," her words cut deep. In truth, he was running. He was scared of losing her any moment. The closer she was to him, the more his fears deepened. The only reason he took this post was to prevent her from coming after him. His perfect plan had failed.

"I'm not running away." His tone raised in depth. He needed a way to counter her words.

"Then why didn't you leave a note or something before you left! I waited for you all this time." Her fiery eyes met with his own stubborn gaze, revealing the hurt he caused her. "When you came back to save the city, I thought I was going to lose you again. I don't want to keep playing this game."

"You deserve better, Hawkeye. You don't deserve me." The Corporal averted his gaze from her and focused on the blinding snow.

"My hands are stained as much as yours. You and your flames…me and my rifle." She moved closer to him, "Look at me." She waited for him to stare in her own eyes, "I made a promise and I intend to keep it, no matter what _you_ do."

"I'm sorry for all of this, I don't want to see you get hurt. I won't be able to stand the sight of your own blood."

"I'm not fragile, I'm here to protect you." She cupped his face in her hands, brushing away his ebony strands away from his face. "You're the one man I truly belong to, and my father was right about you."

For the moment, he threw caution into the wind. The fraternization rules no longer bonded them for two reasons; they _were_ in different departments, and hypothetically, if she did resign, he was free to do as he pleased. He moved in on her slowly, unlatching the clip that held her blond hair up. Golden threads cascaded down her shoulders as she eyed him. She felt his hands grab hold of her soft locks just the same way he did when she was sitting by his bedside. The strands slowly fell back to her shoulders.

An intense heat filled her body as his lips met hers. The feeling of coldness evaporated around her, and she kissed him back, wanting to taste more of him. They were both making up for lost time. The void in her heart disappeared as she held him close to her. She fingered several strands of his hair and tucked them back behind his ear. Out of the corner, her copper eyes picked a rebel coming close to them. "Get down!" She pushed him down to the snow-laden ground and pulled out her gun, as she straddled over his body. The bullet grazed at the man's shoulders, knocking out his firing arm.

Roy watched as the woman he loved protected him. She still had the keen eye of observation with her, and he was grateful for the many times she protected him in tight situations. Something in his own body told him to get up. Down his field of vision, a few white crystals descended from the frosted branches, and it was enough to catch his attention. A white-cloaked figure slowly crept up towards them. She didn't know what happened, as she felt him tug her down into the snow. Roy pulled out his glove and the ignition cloth caught the spark it needed. With the snap of his finger again, the jagged orange ray found its target and singed the clothes on the man's back. Cries of pain broke the silence of the day, as the rebel ran back to his base to nurse his injuries.

"Looks like a busy day," she took Mustang's hand as he lifted her up from the ground.

"The same old routine." He pulled her into his body and clamped his hands around her waist.

"I guess you're not useless in the snow." A smirk appeared between her pale lips.

"You were lucky this time." He captured his lips onto hers again, wishing they could stay like this forever. "You never did answer my question," Roy pulled away from their kiss and tried to read her response, "well?"

She let her hands tease at his shoulders, "That's for you to find out."

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Thanks for reading. Please review and thank you.


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